New to list...

[Jeffrey Henderson <lakota@u.washington.edu>]

Hello, everybody!  Take it easy now, my first post :-).  Anyhow, I have 
an 87 5000S Quattro with 211K; nearly perfect in and out.  Seems to have 
been made in the midst of a model changeover, because the dash design 
appears 86-like (i.e., flippable switches vs. pushbutton ones), and its 
interior appearance does not match well any of the manuals, particularly 
the stock 87 5000 manual I recently got from an Audi dealer.  Be that as 
it may, I have loved this car!  Never unable to get through any inclement 
weather, including many long hauls from Seattle back to Minnesota.  
Cruised through the mountain passes many times covered with snow and ice 
without needing to disengage the cruise control from 65-70mph (er, 
somewhere around there).  And now, with no official speed limit in 
Montana (there never REALLY was one), I blasted back over the holidays 
all 560+ miles in just under 6 hours.  Yes, could've done better, but 
snow and fog, plus my compassion for the car, restrained me.

Problems?  Minor power steering pump leak; went through first liter of 
mineral oil last week, which had lasted 4 months.  Have been told need a 
new short rack, transmission mounts, and bushings by the dealer's service 
dept.  Hell, that was over 5000 miles and it drives as good as ever.  
Also, recently replaced a broke left upper strut mount, front struts, and 
blower fan for the cooling unit.  Pretty cool, they just zipped open the 
cover to the unit with a saw, slipped out the worn out unit, replaced 
with new, and sealed back up again.  Saved four hours of labor.  Sort of 
like a C-section on the cooling unit.  Only problem, now my automatic 
climate control seems stuck on defrost mode, only rarely does it blow 
through my front vents when on "auto", "econ", or "bilevel."  Any 
thoughts?  Also, this isn't a turbo version.  Any performance 
enhancements worth considering on my normally aspirated motor?  Would 
love any feedback. Also recently purchased a 1992 Subaru SVX LS-L AWD 
with every conceivable option.  A great car as well!  Had it up in the 
very snowy Cascades this past weekend, amidst all sorts of cars and 
pickmeups strewn all over and off the road, and my SVX happily flew 
through it all, rear end sliding out a few times though easy to bring 
back in line by backing off the throttle a bit.  In this respect, I have 
to say, my Quattro probably handles better! Has better clearance and less 
stout tires which push less snow and slush out front.  Both are a blast, 
though.  Take care, all.

Jeff Henderson